The Sea Stacks Project: Enhancing the Use of Regional Literature in Atlantic Canadian Schools

• Main Author: Vivian Howard
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: The Partnership 2012-06-01
• Series: Partnership: The Canadian Journal of Library and Information Practice and Research
• Online Access: https://journal.lib.uoguelph.ca/index.php/perj/article/view/1821

Research over the past two decades has amply demonstrated the importance of literature to the formation of both regional and national cultural identity, particularly in the face of mass market globalization of children’s book publishing in the 21st century as well as the predominance of non-Canadian content from television, movies, books, magazines and internet media. However, Canadian children appear to have only very limited exposure to Canadian authors and illustrators. In Atlantic Canada, regional Atlantic Canadian authors and illustrators for children receive very limited critical attention, and resources for the study and teaching of Atlantic Canadian children’s literature are few. Print and digital information sources on regional children’s books, publishing, authors and illustrators are scattered and inconsistent in quality and currency. This research project directly addresses these key concerns by summarizing the findings of a survey of Atlantic Canadian teachers on their use of regional books. In response to survey findings, the paper concludes by describing the creation of the Sea Stacks Project an authoritative web-delivered information resource devoted to contemporary Atlantic Canadian literature for children and teens.